Weak and light headed and feeling faint. Women can feel weak and exhausted, especially following a vigorous, lengthy 2nd stage of pushing. It is also normal to feel a little lightheaded after losing the expected 200 to 400 mls of blood. This is the same for people who donate blood at the blood bank and why the blood bank offers them refreshments and a rest period before leaving to resume any daily activities.
In the hour after the birth the woman's body has to readjust after the blood loss that accompanies giving birth. She needs time to rest, have refreshments and drink plenty of fluids (water if possible) to help her body to stabilise, usually delaying any move to the shower or getting up for prolonged periods until she is feeling OK (generally after 45 minutes to an hour or so).
If you decide to have some champagne or other alcohol soon after the birth, it is wise for the woman to limit it to about half a glass or so as the alcohol can lower your blood pressure further and contribute to you feeling faint when you get up.
For a minority of women, the light-headedness and weakness may persist for a few hours (or a few days) if the bleeding was heavier than normal or her
haemoglobin blood level was low before the birth (she was anaemic). You may wish to read more in
postpartum haemorrhage.
Hungry and thirsty. In the hour after the birth, most women will feel ravenously hungry and thirsty, needing to eat and drink after hours of eating and drinking very little. Remember to pack some favourite foods and treats for after the birth. Hospital food can be very basic!
If you have been given an injection of Syntometrine to routinely manage the 3rd stage of the labour, then you may not feel hungry at all, instead feeling nauseated and possibly vomiting.
Eager to remove drips and epidurals etc.